Sunday, March 13, 2011

The Word of Wisdom

Dear friends and family: Good morning! I have just completed reading President Grant's lesson on Observing the Word of Wisdom, and was very impressed that I needed to write a poem concerning this great revelation which was given to the Prophet Joseph Smith, and is found in Section 89 of the Doctrine and Covenants.

He states: The Lord gave us the Word of Wisdom for our temporal and spiritual salvation, wherein He prohibits the consumption of alcohol, tobacco, and hot drinks, which latter-day prophets have defined to be tea and coffee. The Lord also says that wholesome herbs, grains and fruits are "ordained for the use of man," along with meat, which is "to be used sparingly." In addition to exhorting the Saints to obey this specific counsel, President Grant and other Presidents of the Church have spoken out against the use of harmful or habit-forming substances such as illegal drugs. President Grant said, "The Lord does not want you to use any drug that creates an appetite for itself."

The Word of Wisdom is the law of life and health to the Latter-Day Saints. In the Doctrine and Covenants Section 82:10, the Lord states: "I the Lord am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise."

President Grant further states, "I wish that every Latter-day Saint would remember these few words. How I wish that they were engraven upon our memories and upon our hearts, and that we would determine that God shall be bound to fulfill His promises unto us, because we will keep His commandments."

He quotes from the Doctrine and Covenants Section 130:20-21 the following: "There is a law irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of the world, upon which all blessings are predicated, and when we receive any blessing, it is by obedience to the law upon which it is predicated."

President Grant goes on to say, "If you and I desire the blessings of life, of health, of vigor of body and mind; if we desire the destroying angel to pass us by, as he did in the days of the children of Israel, we must obey the Word of Wisdom; then God is bound, and the blessing shall come to us."

And then he states, "After telling us what is good for us, the Lord makes a promise that is one of the most marvelous, one of the most uplifting and inspiring promises that could possibly be made to mortal man."

He says: "And all Saints who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments, shall receive health in their navel and marrow to their bones; And shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures; And shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and not faint; And I, the Lord, given unto them a promise, that the destroying angel shall pass by them, as the children of Israel, and not slay them."

My dear brothers and sisters, I want to share a very special witness which my own grandfather shared with us as a family concerning what will happen to those who fail to live the Word of Wisdom, as it was revealed to him by an angel of God, while he was a Patriarch some years ago. Since not all of you have his life stories as a Patriarch, which stories were recorded by my own dear mother, Jennie May Woodbury Lee, before Grandpa Woodbury died, I will quote from his book which she shared with us:

"While I was in the L. D. S. Hospital in 1954, I was very weak. One day I saw a real bright light, brighter than noonday. In the light I saw people, men and women, dressed in light clothing. Everyone was so happy, but all busy. A voice said to me, "This is the Celestial Kingdom, the highest degree of glory. This is the reward of those who in mortal life complied with the new and everlasting covenant of marriage in the Temple of the Lord, and kept those covenants sacred, and if you and your wife continue as faithful as you have been, it shall be your privilege and joy to dwell together in the Celestail Kingdom, in the highest degree of glory, with your loved ones and the Father and Son forever."

"When this scene closed, the curtain dropped and what I saw before me was heart rending. I saw men and women, all dressed in dark clothing. Contention and strife existed there. They were searching for something they couldn't find. A voice said to me, "This is what is spoken of in the Bible as Hell, or the bottomless pit. This is the reward of those who in mortal life disobeyed the laws of God, and the laws of the land, and created appetites and took things into their bodies which were contrary to the teachings of the Lord and detrimental to their physical health. In mortal life they could get things to satisfy this appetite and craving; Here they cannot get anything to satisfy it. In this condition they'll remain for the 1000 years during the Millennium, before their bodies are resurrected from the grave."

Grandpa states: "I was happy when this scene closed. I sure feel sorry for people in that condition. I hope and pray that myself or any of my loved ones will never be in that group...that they'll all be worthy to enjoy the blessings of the Celestial Kingdom."